This invention relates to a transparent case adapted to encapsulate a remote control unit for preventing liquids and foods from contacting the pushbuttons on the control unit, thereby becoming sticky or possibly inoperative.
Hand-held control units for television receivers or video cassette recorders commonly are provided with manually depressible pushbuttons. These pushbuttons extend through the wall of the control unit, leaving a small clearance crack between the side surface of each pushbutton and the edge of the associated hole in the control unit wall. People sometimes drink beverages or consume sandwiches while watching television programs. If the beverage should spill onto the hand-held controller, or if jelly from a sandwich should contact the controller surface, the liquid or food material could clog the pushbuttons and/or provide a sticky pushbutton surface. Controllers should not be immersed in water to clean the controller surfaces because the water could enter the controller through the cracks around the pushbuttons, thereby possibly degrading the performance of the control circuitry within the controller.
The present invention contemplates a transparent case structure to encapsulate a remote control unit so as to shield the pushbuttons from contact with foreign substances, especially liquid beverages or sticky foods. The case has a number of deflectable pads registerable with individual ones of the pushbuttons on the control unit, such that each pad can be individually depressed to operate the associated push button.